Daily devotion – all things are not against you.
If only we could see what God sees as He weaves His plan over our lives. Jacob could not see what was unveiling in his life and that of his family. He had made the mistake of forgetting that God was on the throne and guiding his every step.
Genesis 42:29 Then they went to Jacob their father in the land of Canaan and told him all that had happened to them, saying: 30 “The man who is lord of the land spoke roughly to us, and took us for spies of the country. 31 But we said to him, ‘We are honest men; we are not spies. 32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is with our father this day in the land of Canaan.’ 33 Then the man, the lord of the country, said to us, ‘By this I will know that you are honest men: Leave one of your brothers here with me, take food for the famine of your households, and be gone. 34 And bring your youngest brother to me; so I shall know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. I will grant your brother to you, and you may trade in the land.’ ”
35 Then it happened as they emptied their sacks, that surprisingly each man’s bundle of money was in his sack; and when they and their father saw the bundles of money, they were afraid. 36 And Jacob their father said to them, “You have bereaved me: Joseph is no more, Simeon is no more, and you want to take Benjamin. All these things are against me.”
And so Jacob’s account was an exaggerated account, as fear so often exaggerates our problems. “All things are against me.”
But that was not so. It just looked like all things were against him.
We should never measure the problem by that which we can only see.
That was Jacob’s mistake at this time!
Paul said we don’t “look at those things which are seen, but the things which are not seen: the things that you’re seeing are temporal; the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18).
Jacob, that isn’t true. All things are not against you.
Jacob, if you only knew the whole truth, instead of crying out in despair and fear, you would be rejoicing and jumping up and down if you only knew the whole story. What was about to unfold!
Despair so often comes from just half of the truth. Just that which I can see and not taking God into account.
It’s when I take God into account that I begin to endure and have that staying quality and so fear begins to subside when I consider God is on the throne.
God is still working. God hasn’t abandoned me. And then I can have confidence a confidence that God has everything in hand!
But the cry, “All things are against me”, it was a false cry based upon fragmentary knowledge. The Bible tells us that all things are not against us.
The Bible tells us that “All things are working together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).
All things. What do “all things” include? “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Famine, persecution, nakedness, peril, sword? Nay, in all these things”(Romans 8:35).
These things may include famine. They may include nakedness. They may include peril. They may include the sword.
But if I have to endure these kinds of afflictions, whatever comes it’s working together for good because I love God and they cannot separate me from the love of God.
For “in all these things I am more than a conqueror through Him who loves me. For I am persuaded, that neither depth, nor height, nor principalities, nor angels, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor any other creature, is able to separate me from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:37-39).
This week remember you are not alone in your situation – things may ‘appear’ all against you, but they aren’t, for God is with you!
Take comfort in knowing the God who is love walks every step with you!